


Teach Me

by Applesandbannas747



Series: Kiss Me [1]
Category: Fence (Comics)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:27:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 11,909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25322374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Applesandbannas747/pseuds/Applesandbannas747
Summary: Nick and his rival are opposites in many ways, including the areas in which they might make fit teachers. Nick doesn't have the expertise or technique in fencing that Seiji does, but it just so happens that the expertise and techniques Nickdoeshave are exactly what Seiji thinks he needs to learn before his upcoming date.
Relationships: Nicholas Cox/Seiji Katayama
Series: Kiss Me [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1923718
Comments: 146
Kudos: 152





	1. Kissing Lessons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It should be noted that I wrote this back in Aprilish so like...it was written well before volume 4 came out and I frankly can't be bothered to rewrite it to try and make it fit better with things now lmao soooo yeah, I apologize for that. Thanks to those of you who decide to give it a read anyway! 💜

“So how’d that date go?” Nick asked as they dressed down after practice. Eugene grimaced, which was answer enough. “Really? That bad?”

“Not great,” Eugene confirmed. “Our chemistry was off.”

“Ah, so he was a bad kisser.”

“Not that kissing is all that matters,” Eugene said valiantly, “but yeah, it wasn’t great.”

“Bummer,” Nick said consolingly.

“I have some connections,” Aiden offered magnanimously. “If you need a good snog to cleanse your palate.”

“That’s generous of you,” Eugene laughed.

Aiden continued on to give a list of names with a sort of résumé-like rundown of all of them. Nick was unsure if it was a joke or not. He ducked out before coming to a conclusive answer on that; he had homework to finish. Seiji wasn’t far behind him but they didn’t walk together, even though they were going to the same place.

Their room wasn’t huge but it was large in Nick’s opinion. Really roomy for a dorm, he thought. Even sharing it with Seiji, it was beyond reasonable. They even had their own bathroom. A sweet deal all around. But Seiji always looked dissatisfied with it. Seiji was always dissatisfied with everything when Nick was involved.

Nick took their desk for once, hunching over his homework diligently. The sooner he was done with this report, the more of his Saturday he could enjoy. For once, he managed to focus on the task at hand until it was totally complete.

Tucking his computer away, Nick stood up to stretch.

“Don’t use all the hot water,” Seiji warned without even looking up as Nick made his way to their bathroom.

“Why not? You already had a shower, what do you care?”

Seiji didn’t answer, which made Nick think he was just being a tiresome nagger for fun. Seiji _did_ enjoy his nagging.

Once out of the shower, Nick swept across the room to snag his phone and slip it in his back pocket. The door was blocked when he turned back to leave.

“Do you need something?” Nick asked suspiciously when Seiji didn’t move out of the way.

“Yes,” Seiji said imperiously. Nick waited impatiently to hear what further nagging Seiji had to offer today. “I need you to kiss me.”

Nick would have keeled over dead if dying of shock was possible.

“What?” He spluttered. Seiji raised an eyebrow at him, no more impressed by Nick’s shock than he was by anything Nick did.

“You’re good at it, aren’t you? I assume you must be, the way you talk to Eugene.”

“I—what?”

“Honestly, Nicholas, is it that your mouth or your ears have stopped working? Kissing. You’ve done it, correct?”

“Yeah…”

“And you’re good at it?”

“Um. I like to think so, yes.”

“Then teach me.”

“What?” Nick asked but when Seiji gave him an exasperated frown, he expanded his vocabulary. “You want me to teach you…how to kiss?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Is it that hard to deduce?” Seiji asked impatiently. “If you must know, I’ve got a date next week. Kissing could very well be involved and I’m not particularly experienced in that department. I don’t like being bad at things. So teach me.”

It wasn’t—none of it—said as a request. Seiji just stated it, unabashed and self-assured. Like he was only telling Nick not to use all the hot water.

“But…why me?” Nick asked, mind still whirring to try and make sense of Seiji, probably _the_ coldest person Nick knew, demanding that Nick kiss him.

“Because you’re here,” Seiji said simply. “And it’s convenient. And because I have reason to believe you are both adequately good at kissing and unlikely to cause a fuss over this.”

Nick still couldn’t believe Seiji wasn’t at all embarrassed about this. Nick was embarrassed and he wasn’t even the one asking for a random person to kiss him out of _convenience._ But then his discussion with Eugene and Aiden in the locker rooms this morning came back to him and he felt a twinge of guilt. He stared hard at Seiji, trying to look for the nervousness he was now sure was at the root of all this.

“Listen,” he said. It was a touch too gently said; Seiji glared fiercely at him, not appreciating the tone at all. “I know I made it sound like kissing’s a make-or-break thing but that’s hardly the most important part of a relationship. You shouldn’t worry.”

“I’m not worried.” But Nick was pretty sure he was. “I simply don’t like being bad at things.”

“There’s more to it than just being good or bad at it,” Nick tried. “There’s other factors, like chemistry and preferences and—,”

“I didn’t ask.”

“But—,”

“But,” Seiji cut in, louder, “being good or bad at it is part of that all. Don’t patronize me by trying to relay fairytale ideals at me now when I’ve heard the way you all talk.”

Nick winced. That made it sound like he was one of those gross guys that engaged in seriously fucked locker room talk. But he did talk about kissing and old flings. And Aiden and Eugene shared their stories and escapades sometimes too. And everything any of them had ever said about romance and relationships had made it sound like there really was only one thing teenage boys cared about in the end. Nick was a little appalled to realize it. There was more to people than kissing. More to wanting to be with someone than wanting to fuck them.

“I—fuck, who knew you were so impressionable?” Nick groaned. He looked at Seiji, stubborn and standing with legs wide and arms crossed and eyes determined. He looked at the doorknob that was almost blocked from sight by Seiji’s body. Back to Seiji. “Fine, have it your way. I’ll, uh. Try to teach you the basics for your date next week.” But only because he felt responsible for putting strange ideas in Seiji’s head and easing his worries this way seemed easier and more doable than trying to have a heart-to-heart about the things more important than kissing. Seiji wouldn’t listen to all that anyway.

“Good.” Like he hadn’t even questioned that Nick would agree. “You may proceed.”

“Right now?”

“Yes. A week is a short amount of time to master something in, I won’t waste any of the time I do have.”

Seiji didn’t move or shift an inch. He just stayed planted in front of the door like a dragon guarding a castle.

“Well, the first thing about kissing,” Nick said, “is that you’ve got to look like you won’t knee anyone in the dick if they try to touch you.”

“That’s not an actionable item.”

“Not an actionable…? What the hell is wrong with you?” Nick had to laugh at the absurdity of this. “Just—here, let me…” Nick pulled Seiji’s arms from their crossed position but his stance was still all wrong so instead of letting go of the arms he’d just uncrossed, Nick used them to tug Seiji away from the door and a couple of steps into their room. “There, now you’re standing more naturally.” At the comment, Seiji immediately tried to revert back to crossing his arms but Nick held firm. “Are you even trying?”

“What now?” Seiji asked. It was a big question. _Yeah, dumbass, what now?_

“Well, there’s lots of stuff and also, like, nothing at all to kissing.”

“I’d like the in-depth version,” Seiji huffed. “So what comes next?”

“Let’s talk about what you can do with your arms,” Nick decided, since he was still holding Seiji’s and he could already tell they were going to be awkward, uncooked noodles through this.

“Alright.”

“So, a good bet if you want to just let your arms be somewhere and forget about them is the waist area.” Nick demonstrated by pulling Seiji’s hands to his waist. Seiji took the hold reluctantly but diligently. “And you can kind of have them anywhere here, see?” Nick pushed Seiji’s hands down to rest at his hips, then back up to his waist. “And then,” Nick stepped closer, pulled Seiji’s arms around him more. “There’s this. Like a hug.”

“Fascinating.”

“You’re the one that asked for step-by-step instructions,” Nick grumbled. “Okay, now put your arms around my shoulders instead.” Amazingly, Seiji did. Nick felt like they were running through drills. Hugging drills. Could the day get any more bizarre? “Good. You can also, like…” Nick pulled Seiji’s arms so they unwrapped from his neck and set his hands against his chest. “Basically, you can put them wherever feels natural to you. They’ll probably go somewhere on their own in the moment, I’m only bringing it up because you don’t want to let them dangle by your sides or something. You should touch your date when you kiss him. Her?”

“Him.”

“Thought so. Okay, we good on arms?”

“I should think so.”

“Then I’m going to go ahead and…”

“Kiss me?”

“Yeah. Kiss you. There’s other stuff—like, there’s things you can do with your hands but we’ll get back to that later.”

Seiji nodded seriously.

_Am I really going to do this?_

Nick brought a hand to Seiji’s cheek.

“I’m just going to show you this part,” Nick said. “But right now I’m taking your face so I can move it into a position that’s good for kissing. It’s not necessary, but you’re a beginner so I think it’ll be easier if I just position you.”

“Okay.”

“This is obvious, but you’ve got to tilt your face in the opposite direction as your partner. See? Just like this. You should be closing your eyes by now. And…”

Nick kissed Seiji. His lips were soft, perfectly moisturized things that emanated warmth, which shouldn’t have surprised Nick, but it did. Just because Seiji acted like a vampire didn’t mean he was one. Just because his personality was icy didn’t mean his skin would be too. It wasn’t. Seiji was as warm as anyone Nick had kissed and he let Nick tilt his head around for a string of kisses that were simple and chaste and uncomplicated. When he pulled back again, Seiji’s eyes opened swiftly.

“How was that?” He asked.

Maybe it was because he’d just been kissing Seiji and it had turned his brain to mush, but the unsure and nervous question that Seiji asked eagerly and without shame sounded kind of cute to Nick.

“Not bad,” Nick assured but Seiji frowned. “No, really, for what it was, it was good.”

“For what it was?”

“Yeah. Sweet kisses like that are nice.”

“I don’t need sweet kisses.”

“Everyone needs sweet kisses,” Nick told him.

“I need to know about whatever kind of kissing it is that you all are always talking about. Show me _that.”_

“If you insist, I guess.”

“I do.”

Nick considered trying to explain things but decided Seiji was right. Showing would be easier in this case.

“Just follow my lead,” Nick said before kissing Seiji again. He pressed kisses hard against Seiji’s mouth, mingling with the soft, sweet kisses they’d already been over and everything in between. “Alternating pressure,” Nick murmured against Seiji’s lips, “is one trick you should keep in your back pocket.”

Seiji nodded, the motion dragging his lips across Nick’s and bumping their noses together.

“And the other tricks?”

“Speed,” Nick listed, then showed Seiji what he meant by lingering on one kiss before readjusting and pressing a quick succession of kisses against Seiji’s mouth, breaking them up with longer ones again, continuing to offer a variety of hard and soft pressures. “And,” Nick pulled away a tiny bit to say, “then there’s mouth stuff.”

“Mouth stuff?” Seiji repeated, finally sounding somewhat effected by this lesson he’d demanded. “Isn’t it all mouth stuff?”

“Right. But, I mean, like… _mouth_ stuff. This has all been closed-mouth kissing, which is good. But then you can have your mouth open, or you can use tongue. And teeth.”

“Teeth?”

“Yes. So then you just mix around pressure, tempo, and mouth stuff and you get a good make out.”

“How do you know when to do what?”

“You just do whatever feels good,” Nick shrugged.

“How do you… _do_ the mouth stuff?”

“Like this.”

Once again, Nick brought his lips to Seiji’s. But, this time, he prodded gently at the seam between Seiji’s lips. Seiji had to have been expecting it. He’d literally just asked Nick how to do mouth stuff. But his head still jerked back in surprise. Nick let him have the moment he needed, let Seiji come back to him himself and hesitantly open his mouth against Nick’s.

Nick slipped inside and Seiji’s hands tightened into the front of his shirt. _Not bad,_ Nick thought, diving deeper.

When they broke apart this time, Seiji was breathing hard and his eyes took longer to open. His mouth gleamed red and wet and was still held open invitingly.

“I really think you’ll be fine,” Nick said, swiping a thumb over Seiji’s mouth. Seiji pressed into the touch and Nick swallowed. “Yeah, you shouldn’t have a problem on your date.”

“But can you tell?” Seiji asked against Nick’s thumb. Nick finally dropped his hand. “That I’ve never kissed anyone before, can you tell?”

“Wait—no one?” Nick asked. Seiji shook his head. “At all? Never?”

“No, never. If I had any experience, do you think I’d need you to teach me?”

“I mean—shit, I knew you weren’t experienced but I didn’t mean to steal your first kiss for something so stupid.”

Seiji glowered.

“So you _can_ tell,” he said first. Then, because Nick was still staring at him like he was crazy, “And you didn’t steal my first kiss. I gave it to you, I wanted to be rid of it anyway. Firsts are notoriously bad, aren’t they?”

“Maybe. But they’re special.”

“I don’t believe in that sort of sentimental nonsense. Now kiss me again.”

“But you’re a perfectly decent kisser, Seiji, there’s no need—,”

“Perfectly decent won’t do,” Seiji grouched. Nick had no doubt Seiji was going for ‘perfect.’ “And you just admitted you could tell I’m a novice. The best way to get better is to practice. Hence why I need you to kiss me again.”

“I—,” Nick tried to think of a way to get out of this but he didn’t entirely want to.

Seiji really was a perfectly decent kisser. He wasn’t too slobbery and he wasn’t dead-lipped and that was all a guy needed, in Nick’s estimation, to be decent to kiss. But Nick kind of liked kissing Seiji because it was obvious he didn’t know what he was doing. The clumsy kisses and stiff, stilted quality to them were endearing in a way Nick couldn’t put his finger on. It was just that he’d never kissed anyone like Seiji before and Seiji had never shown an ounce of vulnerability before and so the two things coming together—Seiji asking Nick to teach him how to kiss and then trying his best to meet the task? It was interesting. And, truthfully, it was adorably compelling.

“Let’s practice,” Nick agreed, resigned to Seiji’s insane scheme and his own dumb decision.


	2. Where The World Can’t See

Seiji was relentless. He was determined to master make outs and he’d spent every spare moment the last two days with his lips pressed against Nick’s, his arms always clocked at one of the preset positions. It was like he was applying his crazy fencing regime to kissing lessons. Nick wished he could complain but he couldn’t, not really. With _his_ crazy fencing regime and new rigorous academic demands, Nick hadn’t figured out how to balance it all with boys or girls or dates or kisses. But Seiji made the time for both of them and it was kind of nice to have someone to kiss so much. Like now, when Seiji grabbed him right after school.

Nick let out a startled sound at the ambush. It was clumsily executed but Seiji was branching out, his hands gripping Nick’s face as he kissed him instead of finding their usual fit against his waist.

“Loosen up a little,” Nick suggested, layering his hands over Seiji’s and trying to soften their hold so he could eke out some wiggle room. Seiji seemed to get the message and adjusted so that he was only offering a guide for where he’d like Nick’s face to be instead of forcing it. “Good,” Nick said and left it to him.

They tumbled a couple more steps into their room and Nick let his bag fall carelessly off him and to the floor. He knew better than to try relieving Seiji of his messenger bag in the same manner but Seiji dropped it himself shortly after the thud of Nick’s bag hit the floor. Then Seiji’s hand was back against Nick’s face.

This was Seiji’s kiss, so Nick let him experiment with it, let him set the pace. But it wasn’t purely for altruism that Nick handed over control, it was also to feel the cautious press of Seiji’s mouth against his and the hesitance of every move, like he was lost on what to do and waiting for Nick to show him. It was a different kind of fun than taking what he wanted, making Seiji try to give it to him instead.

“You’re not being helpful,” Seiji said, patience lost as he pulled off of Nick to glare at him. “You’re not teaching me how to do it right.”

“I’m letting you practice,” Nick countered cheerily.

“Nicholas, I can’t get better if you don’t help me.”

“Okay, okay, fine. But are you sure you’re up for it right now? We’ve got fencing still. It’ll be suspicious if we both turn up raw-lipped.”

“How so?”

“Uh. It won’t take a genius to put two and two together, Seiji. They’ll know we’re kissing. I thought you might have a problem with that.”

“I don’t. It’s not true.”

“It kind of is, though? We _are_ kissing.”

“It’s not true in a way that matters. This isn’t permanent.”

Nick shrugged. “Then kiss me again.”

Seiji looked ready to ask if Nick planned on being difficult again but he decided against it and pulled Nick’s face back to his, nice and gentle this time. As Seiji kissed him, Nick put more into kissing him back than he had before, no more teasing by withholding and seeing what Seiji would do.

“If you get your date alone,” Nick said, breaking off from a kiss, “there’s some more stuff you can do. Like…”

“Teach me.”

Nick didn’t confirm in any way that he would other than by pressing back in for another kiss, breaking Seiji’s mouth open and taking what he wanted. That wasn’t new. But Nick’s hands left Seiji’s hips to slip under layers of blazer and sweater vest, untucking his shirt to slip up under that too. Seiji had interesting reactions when Nick’s intent became undeniable and his hands pressed against Seiji’s back, the skin here as surprisingly warm and welcoming as Nick had first found Seiji’s lips.

Seiji’s back arched as if trying to get away from the touch on instinct, but it only drove him further against Nick ultimately. After a little full-body stutter, Seiji relaxed, his muscles unbunching under Nick’s fingers.

“You can do that,” Nick mumbled, finishing a thought from earlier. He rubbed up Seiji’s back and then scraped blunted nails down it. Seiji shivered. “There’s more to a good make out than just kissing.”

“Okay,” Seiji breathed. “What else is there?”

“Tons,” Nick told him earnestly. “I told you there’s more you can do with your hands.” A slide of hands up Seiji’s sides to emphasize the point. His skin was so smooth, so supple and soft to the touch. “But there’s other mouth stuff too.”

“Teeth,” Seiji repeated back diligently. “You haven’t shown me that yet.”

“No,” Nick agreed, “I haven’t.”

But he didn’t show Seiji that just yet, kissing him in the sweet way they’d first mastered. He could feel Seiji’s lips pull down into a frown and it made him feel strange—almost light-headed, happy—to experience that familiar frown in this completely new context.

“There’s other _places_ to do mouth stuff than just the mouth,” Nick informed him, kissing the corner of his lips before leaving that frown behind entirely.

As Nick pulled gently away from Seiji’s grasp, Seiji let his hands fall to Nick’s shoulders.

“See? You’re a natural,” Nick said. “That’s cute, holding onto me like that.”

“I’m not trying to be cute,” Seiji said disdainfully, tightening his grip. It was meant to be a warning but it was only even cuter. It felt like Seiji was clinging to him and Nick liked it.

“But it’s good. _You’re_ good. I told you you’d be fine. And I was right. Your guy will like this. No way he won’t.”

Nick found the pulse in Seiji’s neck and kissed it, cutting off whatever response Seiji had been about to give. He was drowning in Seiji, in his soft skin and clean, crisp scent. Seiji’s fingers pressed into his shoulders and his fingers returned in kind, pressing dimples into Seiji’s back, dragging down spine and filling divots, but always pressing Seiji closer. Nick was sure to leave Seiji’s neck tingling with sensation but without the stain of a bruise to memorialize all of the kisses pressed and blown there, all the soft caresses of tongue and whisper-soft grazings of teeth.

When he was done, Seiji’s grip eased up a bit. His eyes were closed and Nick couldn’t help but stare. He’d never seen Seiji’s face so relaxed and open. So vulnerable. And anticipatory. When Nick took too long to do anything more, Seiji’s expression changed. Nick was tempted to label it disappointment.

“What else?” Seiji asked, eyes opening to level at Nick. He was back to appearing bored and demanding and unimpressed. But Nick had already seen his want.

“You can kiss anywhere,” Nick shrugged. “Then there’s like, hickeys and stuff, but—,”

“Show me that. Hickeys.”

“You want me to…give you a hickey?”

“Yes, I want to know how it’s done.”

“You’ll definitely get some raised eyebrows if I just leave a hickey on your neck for the world to see.”

“Then don’t.”

“But you just said—oh,” Nick said, realization hitting as he watched Seiji’s fingers abandon their station on Nick’s shoulders to pull the knot from his tie, leaving it hanging open over his shoulders as he popped buttons through their holes.

“You said you can kiss anywhere, I can only assume there’s a similar rule for hickeys, so leave one where the world _can’t_ see.”

“You make a convincing argument,” Nick said, eyes glued to the dip of clavicle and strip of chest Seiji’s clever fingers were revealing for him.

“And you’re surprised by that?”

“No, I guess I’m not.”

Nick had to retract one hand from Seiji’s back to trail the tips of his fingers down Seiji’s throat, hoping for and receiving another shiver, before pulling aside layers of clothes to get at a spot of skin that would be easy enough to hide in most contexts. Nick got to work, starting with the same kisses that he’d employed on Seiji’s neck. He built up to taking the skin gently between his lips and sucking slightly on it, and then he worked it over again, this time between his teeth and with more insistence than gentleness. Seiji’s breath faltered out and broke, a hitch like a groan taking them both by surprise.

Seiji clapped a hand against his mouth and when Nick left the purpling skin he’d just finished teasing, he found red covering Seiji’s cheeks.

“Don’t,” Nick coaxed, prying Seiji’s hand from his mouth, holding it to prevent it from returning to its task. “Don’t hide your voice, I like to hear it.” That only seemed to make Seiji blush deeper. “Really, it’s good. People like to hear when they’re making you feel good.”

“It’s embarrassing,” Seiji protested in an indignant hiss.

“What part of kissing _isn’t?”_

“That’s…not a terrible point,” Seiji conceded after a long time considering it.

“Are you surprised?”

“Yes.”

“Maybe next time you won’t be.”

Seiji looked unconvinced. His eyes drifted down to their hands and Nick realized he was still holding Seiji’s. He expected Seiji to pull his away but he only rotated it a bit, checking the face of his watch and frowning at what he saw there.

“It will be time for practice soon,” he said.

“Oh, yeah!” Nick had practically forgotten. He pressed the pad of a thumb to the bruise on Seiji’s chest. “You were great today. I give you an A-plus. But remember you asked for this when Eugene and Aiden start a stink over your pretty little hickey.”

Seiji tilted his head to the side, thinking. Then he really did pull away from Nick, hand sliding from his.

Nick didn’t know what he’d been expecting, but it wasn’t for Seiji to undress right down to his bare chest, neatly putting each article of clothing in its place. Nick had seen Seiji shirtless tons of times. But he’d never wanted to touch the extra skin it exposed or trail kisses or bite bruises across his bare chest. Not until today. Not until just now.

But that wasn’t what Seiji had stripped for. He retrieved a simple white shirt and pulled it on.

“There,” he said smugly. “Now I won’t need to change.”

He sounded so ridiculously—adorably—pleased with himself that Nick had to reach out and tug Seiji to him by the belt loops for one last kiss before practice.


	3. Exposure Therapy

On Wednesday, Nick was on his way across the lunchroom to Bobby and Dante when his eye caught on Seiji’s solitary figure. His was the only table with a sole occupant; it always was. And then Nick’s feet decided to take him where his eyes were snagging. And _then_ he didn’t see the point in changing course—he was already here, wasn’t he?

Seiji glanced up when Nick plopped down his tray. He didn’t ask if it was alright if he sat; he just did. Seiji could deal with it. He already had to deal with Nick’s presence most of the time, what would an extra forty minutes cost him? Of course, lately, Seiji hadn’t seemed to mind his presence too much. But that was only because of the kissing and there couldn’t be kissing in the cafeteria.

“You don’t have to sit with me,” Seiji said, his tone suggesting he’d rather like it if Nick would leave him. His tone said that. But the words only made Nick want to stay.

“I want to,” Nick said firmly, only because he thought it was a lonely thing to say. _You don’t have to sit with me._ Seiji might like to be alone—logically, Nick knew he probably did. But he didn’t want Seiji to feel like he had to be. And Seiji didn’t shoo him away so Nick kept on talking. “Am I allowed to know about your date?”

“What do you mean are you _allowed_ to?”

“I mean will you tell me about it if I ask?”

 _“Are_ you asking?”

“Yeah,” Nick decided. “I am. Who’s it with? Someone from Kings Row?”

“No.”

“Anyone I know?”

“Why would you know anyone not from Kings Row?”

“I dunno. If he’s a high profile fencer, I might.” But then Nick thought on his words and shook his head. “Nah, no I wouldn’t. I only know you.” And Jesse Coste, but that name wasn’t one to toss around unless you wanted a fight. And Nick didn’t.

“For someone so insistent on becoming a great fencer, you ought to know your competition.”

“Maybe. But no one else has caught my interest so I don’t care about them.”

“That’s not how knowing your competition works.”

“So, your date. Is he cute?”

“I wouldn’t have agreed to a date unless I found him appealing.”

“So, he’s the one that asked you out, then?” Nick asked.

“I just said as much, didn’t I?”

“Where’d you meet? Does he fence? What’s he look like? Got a picture—what about his Facebook or something?”

“You ask too many questions,” Seiji said tiredly, but he considered as he chewed his next bite of food. Nick waited for him to respond. He thought he would. And he was right. “I haven’t got a picture of him.”

“Will you sneak one for me? On your date? If you’re going to so much effort for it, he must be impressive.”

“I’m not taking a creepshot of my date for you, Nicholas.”

“Stingy. Can I meet him?”

“Why?”

“If you won’t take creepshots, it seems like the least you can do to introduce me to him.”

“I haven’t even been on a single date with him yet, the idea of introducing him around is absurd. And I don’t know why I’d introduce him to you or why you’d want to meet him.”

“Because we’re friends and because I’m curious.”

“You keep saying that word. Friends. I don’t think you know what it means.”

“Yeah, I do! Friends help friends out, right? And fence. And talk about boys. I think we count as friends these days, don’t you think?” Nick had only meant to josh with Seiji but, as he said it, he actually agreed with it. And he wanted to see now if Seiji would too. So he didn’t say anything more until Seiji’s eyes flicked to him and then away again.

Seiji sighed.

“Fine. Technically, I suppose that does sound like…”

“Like what?” Nick pressed.

“Like we’re friends, alright?”

“Alright,” Nick smiled. “So can I meet him?”

“No.”

“Aw, why not?”

“Because I don’t trust you.”

“What?” Nick laughed. “You think I’d want to compare notes with him? Ask him how you did as, like, your final assessment?”

“Shut up,” Seiji hissed, scanning across the entire lunchroom without moving his head. So he did have _some_ shame, then, if he didn’t want the whole school knowing he’d asked his roommate for kissing lessons.

“I’m kidding,” Nick said lightly. “I know you’ll do great.”

“I still hear you talking when I distinctly remember telling you to stop that.”

“Where are you going on your date?”

“I don’t know. He’s taking me out. He’s picking me up here Saturday night at seven and that’s all I know.”

“Seven? So it’ll be a short date, then.”

“How do you mean?” Seiji asked sharply, glaring at Nick like he’d just said something terribly insulting. But Nick recognized this particular glare by now. It meant Seiji was nervous. Worried. “Is that some sort of code?”

“What—no. Seiji, no, I didn’t mean _he_ wants it to be short. But you’ll want to be back by nine, won’t you? You don’t like cutting it close to curfew, you’re actually _ready_ for lights out by the lights out bell at nine-thirty, so I figured you’d want to be back here in time to get ready for your date with your awful pajamas and your bed.”

Seiji looked at Nick hard, teeth catching a corner of lip unthinkingly as if he was concentrating very hard, trying to puzzle something out.

“What’s wrong with my pajamas?” Seiji asked at long last.

“Man, what _isn’t_ wrong with your pajamas?” Nick laughed at Seiji’s consternated expression.

When the bell rang to signal the lunch period was over, Nick and Seiji stood up. It was with something close to amazement that Nick realized they’d talked the entire lunch break and never run out of things to say.

* * *

Seiji was dressed for bed when Nick got to the room that night. He did a double-take at the sight and had to check his phone for the time. But it wasn’t even eight yet.

“Is this some sort of revenge for me saying your pajamas are awful? Exposure therapy?”

“The world doesn’t revolve around you, Nicholas. And where have you been?”

“Why? Were you waiting for me?”

Seiji glared so Nick knew he had it right. But he wanted to hear Seiji say it so he crossed his arms and leaned back against the door, clearly signaling that he didn’t plan to get on with their lessons until Seiji did.

“Fine.”

“Fine what?”

“Fine, yes. I was waiting for you.”

“I thought the world didn’t revolve around me?”

“It doesn’t. I just can’t practice alone.”

Nick considered making a dirty joke but Seiji had cooperated so nicely that he decided against it. Pushing off the door, Nick lazily made his way to Seiji. He was watched with annoyance. That wasn’t anything new. When Nick got to Seiji, he whispered fingers up the side of his face and brushed them back into hair. He could feel the product Seiji used to style it, still holding firm after a full day of school and fencing.

“Remember what I said about trying to look like you want to be kissed?” Nick asked softly, teasingly. Seiji glowered.

“That shouldn’t be a problem when I’m on a date with someone I actually want kissing me.”

Nick hummed, pushing his hand further into Seiji’s hair and testing its length for grip. When Nick snuck his other hand up the front of Seiji’s nightshirt and danced fingertips across the curve of his hipbone, he paired the soft touch with a sturdy—but not too hard—pull on the handful of hair he’d taken. With an exhale that bordered on a more obscene sound, Seiji tilted forward.

“Much better,” Nick said, satisfied. “Now you look properly ready to be kissed.”

“Then why aren’t you kissing me?”

Good question.

Nick remedied the situation by wrapping his arm around Seiji’s waist and pulling him in tight, pressing their mouths together. Seiji opened his mouth at once and Nick had to admit that all this practice was doing Seiji some good. His date wouldn’t guess that Seiji was entirely new to kissing.

But Nick could still tell. He thought that might be because he knew Seiji so well. Because he knew Seiji wasn’t a hesitant sort of person but he could pick out every uncertainty he had while kissing Nick. The way his hands migrated around like they couldn’t decide which place was best to rest them instead of migrating, as Nick’s did, to feel and touch as much as possible, not interested in settling down. Or the way his tongue didn’t often venture from his mouth to Nick’s or how, when it did, it bumped around clumsily and briefly.

Maybe Nick only noticed it because he was watching for it, because he liked it. He still thought it was sweet.

Seiji gasped as Nick gave another pull to his hair, he seemed to like it fine.

“Another thing you can do with hands,” Nick said, lips falling away from Seiji’s to speak, “is hair. You’ve got to kind of read what the other person is into when you play with it. You can be real gentle…” Nick pulled fingers through Seiji’s hair, convincing it free of its styling. He’d already broken a lot of the styling gel’s hold but he combed through it more now. “But sometimes it’s nice to get a little rougher with it. You just…” Nick tangled up a handful of hair in his fist again. “See?”

“I see,” Seiji confirmed just before Nick kissed him again, tugging gently at his roots to elicit more little gasps.

Seiji moved so easily against Nick and responded so well to everything that Nick had a hard time stopping. But Seiji wasn’t asking him to stop, either, so it wasn’t really a problem. Seiji’s lips felt plump under Nick’s and he was unable to resist biting the bottom one.

Seiji yelped.

Nick let go, pulled away.

“Sorry, did that hurt?” He asked worriedly.

Seiji shook his head in a quick, jerky motion.

“No, I just wasn’t expecting it. You didn’t warn me.”

“Sorry,” Nick repeated. “I stopped thinking. I won’t do it again.”

“No,” Seiji repeated, “that’s alright. You can. I’m expecting it now. That’s the last part of the…mouth stuff, isn’t it?”

“By my estimation, yeah, that’s pretty much it.”

“Then show me, I want to know about it.”

Nick nodded but he was still slow to take hold of Seiji again, unable to stop watching him, to make sure he was fine. There was something about making a guy yelp that made you want to treat him gently, to be careful with him. So Nick’s touches were all soft and controlled this time, his hand at Seiji’s back holding him securely but with care, and the hand he pushed back into black hair only pulled through the strands and scraped lightly against scalp, never taking hold or tugging. Seiji huffed impatiently at Nick’s regime, at his sweet kisses. But Nick took his time working them back into it.

This time, when Nick targeted Seiji’s lip, he made his intention clear, focusing down on kissing it, and swirling his tongue over it before even closing his own lips over it to give a little suck, a little pull. Seiji made another sound of impatience, but it wasn’t a huff. It was something better. Something that, instead of being unimpressed with Nick’s concern, was asking him to do more. So Nick did. He went ahead and nibbled at Seiji’s lip again, pulled at it teasingly, listened to the thrums of want and approval trapped in Seiji’s throat as he did.

“How are you so good at this?” Seiji asked when Nick released his lip, leaving it more swollen than ever.

“Practice, I guess.”

“How much?”

“Why? Are you trying to find the magic number of hours it takes before you’ll be sufficiently good? Because, I’m sorry to say, but I don’t log the time I spend kissing people so I don’t know.”

“Are you kissing anyone now?”

“Seiji,” Nick said flatly, “that’s a pretty stupid question.” He was feeling cheeky, so he let his hand fall from Seiji’s waist to squeeze his ass once. “I’m kissing you literally _right_ now.”

“You know what I mean.”

Seiji was getting steadily pinker each second Nick left his hand on his ass.

“No, I’m not a cheater.”

“I didn’t say you are. Casual arrangements exist, or so Aiden’s so fond of saying.”

“It’d feel like cheating to me, casual or not.”

Seiji frowned, eyebrows furrowing. It was a more honest version of his worried glare.

“Does _this_ feel like cheating to you?”

Nick didn’t know why he was so surprised by the question but it caught him off guard.

“No,” he said automatically. But, because Seiji had asked and because his worry wasn’t fading, Nick thought harder about his answer. “No,” he said again, deciding he meant it. “This doesn’t feel like cheating. Dates don’t mean anything—shit, no, sorry, that’s not what I mean. I mean…dates could mean _anything._ He might be your future boyfriend. Or he might be a guy you see once. Either way, at this point, you don’t owe him anything unless you guys have already agreed to _date.”_

“We haven’t. He only asked me out.”

“Then I don’t see how it’s different than, like, booking a couple of dates with different people to see who you like, you know? Not,” Nick said awkwardly, “that I’m another date you’ve booked, but—,”

“I know what you mean,” Seiji said, saving Nick from saying anything stupider. But there was really no saving Nick from saying stupid shit.

“I think it’s really sweet of you, in a really, really weird sort of way,” he admitted, stealing a kiss against Seiji’s mole and reveling in the way it made the left side—and only the left side—of his face scrunch up so that it looked like he was winking in a disgruntled sort of way. “Wanting to be good at kissing for your date, it’s…I don’t know, it’s cute. Nice.”

“Hardly. I told you, I don’t like being bad at things.”

“Don’t try to pretend that you don’t have a soft side.” Nick let go of Seiji, the hand on his ass the last to go before stepping back. And, really, Seiji looked great in messy hair and red lips and rumpled blue nightshirt. “I take it back about your pajamas,” he said. “They’re actually perfect on you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahaha something fun about editing/posting so long after writing is re-experiencing the details of whatever the fuck I decided to write. For example, when editing this chapter, I was like ah yes I see that we’re back on our bullshit about butts. really, am i ever _not_ on my bullshit about butts? no. but sometimes I'm better about being quiet about that bullshit than others XD


	4. A Little Too Tightly

Nick was dead tired but he didn’t let that stop him from slogging to the gym in the morning. He stayed out of Seiji and his crazy tall coach’s hair, knowing well enough to stick to the opposite end of the gym or risk a scolding. Nick wasn’t sure what he hated more, when Dmytro told him off or when Seiji did. What entitled them to the gym more than him, anyway? But Nick didn’t want to get into it. So he practiced his technique quietly, zoning out the rest of the room.

A hand on his shoulder startled Nick badly, nearly making him flail to get it off him—he hadn’t been expecting the touch.

“You’re tensing your shoulder again.”

Nick took forever to register who the attractive boy in front of him was.

“Seiji?”

“Yes?” Seiji asked with confusion at Nick’s gaping.

“You—your hair’s different,” Nick stated. Seiji withdrew his hand from Nick’s shoulder to brush his hair like he meant to tuck it behind his ear, but it wasn’t long enough to catch there and came tumbling back out to curtain over his forehead. “I almost didn’t recognize you.”

“Don’t be dramatic, it’s not that different.”

“It _is,”_ Nick insisted.

He couldn’t stop staring. Seiji always wore his hair gelled severely into a side sweep and Nick had _never_ seen it down before. Even when it was falling from its style or mussed or messy, it was still up and out of his face. It always framed his features in sharp lines. But this…the soft fall of hair now framed his face in a new way that looked delicate and gorgeous and seemed to contrast with all the other sharp lines of Seiji’s features in a way that made them appealing.

“You utterly destroyed my hair last night, it was entirely unsalvageable this morning.” Seiji sounded strangely defensive. “So I just brushed it out until I’ve got time to fix it after my shower.”

“It looks good.”

“You’re only saying that so I don’t forbid you to pull my hair again.”

Nick could have pointed out that Seiji was the one that kept telling him to do stuff to him, to show him things. But he didn’t want to get into that either.

“I’m serious,” he said, unable to resist reaching out and touching Seiji’s bangs, silky and soft and free of product, the hair slipped pleasantly through his fingers. “I think you look really pretty with your hair like this.”

Nick was so distracted by this new version of Seiji that seemed so much younger and softer than the one he was used to, he almost missed the faint color to Seiji’s cheeks.

“Do you want me to help you or not?” Seiji asked with such impatience that Nick worried he’d missed whatever conversation Seiji was continuing because he’d been too busy admiring him to listen.

But then he understood they hadn’t actually _had_ this conversation; Seiji was just skipping ahead to it because he was embarrassed by Nick’s compliment. The fencing piste was always safe ground to stand on. Familiar ground.

“Where’s Dmytro?” Nick asked, scanning the gym.

“Gone, we’re finished for the day.”

Nick scanned the gym one more time before stealing a kiss from Seiji.

“Yes,” Nick said, pulling away and reluctantly letting his hand drop out of Seiji’s pretty hair. “Please, teach me.”

* * *

Seiji’s hair was perfectly in place when Nick saw him again in first period. But, strangely, he still found himself staring. Still thought that Seiji’s cutting face was appealing, even framed in additional hard lines.

After three hours of staring, Nick thought he’d burst if he had to go another three without touching. So, after second period, Nick grabbed Seiji’s wrist right out of the classroom and hauled him to an out-of-the-way stairwell, only stopping when they were all the way to the top, standing on the landing with the locked door that led to the roof or a slide into the secret sex dungeon or who knew what. It wasn’t important.

“Is this part of kissing too?” Seiji asked drolly.

“It can be. If you’re up for it?”

Seiji primly pulled his wrist from Nick’s grasp to set down his bag against the wall. Nick did likewise, barely tossing his own bag off him before he was on Seiji again.

“You really _can’t_ pull my hair right now,” Seiji warned at Nick’s advance.

“Later, then,” Nick agreed without concern, fitting his hands against Seiji’s waist. Seiji didn’t have a lot of curves; he was all hard, straight lines and unforgiving angles. The notable exception was his ass, which Nick had noticed recently was way perkier than it had any right to be. But he _did_ have a waist, a tiny taper that Nick loved finding with his hands the way he did now, hauling Seiji to him. “My hair’s always a mess.”

“I know.”

“So,” Nick said with a light huff of laughter, “you can practice.”

Seiji looked alarmed at the suggestion. Nick kissed him before Seiji could say anything more. Lunch didn’t last forever and they both needed to eat after this. There wasn’t time to waste. Nick trusted that Seiji would figure out what he wanted to do and didn’t worry too much about it.

Seiji did. Worry about it. Nick could feel his hands hovering again, unsure where to go, unable to decide. And he was thinking too much about it—he wasn’t moving his lips hardly at all, so it was all on Nick to keep it up. He wondered if it would be constructive to mention to Seiji that freezing up like this with his date would give him away. But he thought that’d only make it worse. And, anyway, Nick didn’t mind it. Seiji’s date might, but that’d only prove him a dick. How could you not find this cute?

“Seiji,” Nick murmured, “just do what feels good. That’s all that matters.”

Seiji’s arms didn’t land right away but when they did settle around his neck, one of his hands scraped up Nick’s head. When he found Nick’s hair, he didn’t pet it or pull it, but he did seem perfectly content to tangle fingers into it and hold tight—just on the edge of _too_ tight. But Nick liked it. He always liked when Seiji held a little too tightly to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this entire fic literally came about because I couldn’t stop thinking about this picture of Seiji and his pretty hair  
>   
> (HamletMachine did some of the covers for the comics, in case you recognize the style but can’t place it off the top of your head<3)  
> that's just important to me for you guys to know lmao


	5. Unfair

“One last day until your date,” Nick declared on Friday night. Seiji looked up from their desk.

“I suppose so.”

“You don’t sound very excited.”

“Do I ever?”

Nick laughed and clapped a hand on Seiji’s back.

“At least you’re self-aware.”

“Well,” Seiji said decisively, standing up, “we haven’t got much time of this arrangement left.”

“Yeah.”

“Have you taught me all there is to know about kissing?”

“I’ve only had a week. But I’ve done my best.”

“How do I know if he’s going to kiss me?” Seiji blurted.

“How do you know when I’m going to kiss you?”

“You kiss me when I tell you to.”

“And I only kiss you when you say so?”

Seiji thought about it. “I suppose not. But…but I expect you to, it’s not the same.”

“It basically is. Just assume that he wants to kiss you. He wouldn’t have asked you out if he didn’t. I think you’ll know when he makes a move, you should recognize it by now. What it looks like when someone’s about to kiss you.”

“But—,”

“He’ll lean in,” Nick said, leaning in. “He might take you by the waist…” Nick hooked an arm around Seiji’s waist. “And pull you to him.” He pulled Seiji to him. “Or he might take your face,” Nick cupped Seiji’s cheek. “But, more than anything, he’ll _look_ like he wants to kiss you.” Nick wanted to kiss him.

Seiji closed his eyes. “Okay,” he whispered, the word disappearing on Nick’s lips.

Nick kissed Seiji fiercely, bruisingly, as if kissing Seiji harder could wring more than this last night of kissing out of him. Like he could make up for all the kisses he wouldn’t get when Seiji was off with his new boyfriend by packing the force of ten kisses into every one he gave Seiji now. Seiji clung nicely to him and let his voice out, just like Nick had asked him.

A stuttering little moan that was close to a whimper made Nick ease up a bit, switching to softer, slower kisses. Seiji was heavy against Nick but when he switched the direction of his body mass, he was just plain _heavy,_ pulling Nick a stumble of steps forward.

“Seiji, what are you—?” Nick gasped, breaking from Seiji’s lips to catch him from falling. But there was no need, their desk had already done the job and Seiji was leaning back on it, sitting on it.

“I felt too heavy to keep standing,” Seiji said with panting breaths. “Is that normal?”

“It can be,” Nick said. Just because he’d never heard anyone admit it before didn’t mean it couldn’t be normal. “What’s not normal is how irresistible you are, I mean, fuck, it’s unfair, Seiji.”

Seiji stared at Nick like he was insane but then his reddened lips pulled up in a smug little smirk.

“Good,” he said. “I don’t like being bad at things.”

“You’re not,” Nick assured, leaning in again. “At all.”

Seiji’s smirk tasted great, especially when Nick reduced it to letting out another moan. He slipped a hand up Seiji’s t-shirt and explored all the lean muscle and warm skin he could find, inching his hand upward and delighting in the way it made Seiji twitch and squirm.

“I thought you said you’d taught me—everything,” Seiji’s voice hitched wonderfully as he said it.

“I said I’d done my best in the time given me,” Nick replied slickly, pressing fingers firmly against sensitive skin. “There’s always more to learn about kissing. Maybe if you’d given me more warning…” Nick trailed off with a shrug.

“It didn’t occur to me,” Seiji protested, head tipping back. And that was an invitation if ever there was one so Nick took it and kissed Seiji’s neck. Carefully, carefully teasing him without marking him up for his date tomorrow.

“But this is advanced stuff anyway—stuff you won’t need on the first date. Besides, it’s just more stuff you can do with your hands. And you can do basically _anything_ with your hands.”

“Mmmm.”

“It’s all about finding the spots your partner likes—different people have different sensitivities. But, obviously, there’s spots that are more likely to feel good on anyone. Once you find what they like, though, you’re set for making future fun times feel real good.”

“Alright.” Seiji’s voice was even but only because he’d deliberately made it come out that way, which was as endearing as if he’d just let it come out how it wanted to.

Nick kissed Seiji’s throat and followed it down to a collarbone. He wanted to bite it but it would have been ill-advised to follow the impulse, so he only kissed it.

“And you should check in with your partner too, that’s the best way to find the things they like.” Nick tapped his finger under Seiji’s shirt as he finally pulled off of his neck before he lost to temptation and left a hickey where the whole world—including Seiji’s date—would see. “Do you like this?”

Seiji tipped his head back down to glare at Nick with his face flushed. Nick waited patiently for Seiji to break and either admit he did or say he didn’t, in which case Nick would stop. Liking something didn’t count if you were uncomfortable with it.

“Yes,” Seiji relented. “Yes, I like it.”

Nick nodded and kissed Seiji again, sweet ones that he let Seiji gradually deepen. He really was getting good at this.

It was the bell for lights out that finally persuaded Nick off Seiji. His lips felt as raw as Seiji’s looked and when he stepped out of Seiji’s arms—and legs—Seiji stayed on the desk. He looked stunning there, for all that he looked slightly dazed. Maybe he was still too heavy to stand.

“Should I carry you to bed?” Nick asked. Seiji scoffed. “I _could.”_

Nick saw the dismissal in Seiji’s eyes and took it as a challenge.

Defiantly, Nick pressed back between Seiji’s legs and hoisted under his thighs, plucking him off the desk. Seiji’s arms were around him at once, holding tight for a different reason than usual.

The descent was a little less graceful than the pick-up had been. Nick couldn’t figure out a way to drop Seiji nicely on his bed without dropping himself too. So he decided Seiji was a big boy and could handle Nick’s weight on top of him for a couple seconds.

“Nicholas!” Seiji huffed, letting go of him once they were both on the bed, pushing him off. But not very convincingly.

“Seiji,” Nick grinned, leaning down for one last kiss. Then he stood up and looked down at Seiji. “Goodnight.”

“I’m not even ready for bed, this whole stunt was pointless.”

“I wouldn’t say it was pointless.”


	6. An Affection Thing

Seiji had a glare to express nervousness. He had a set jaw to show he was worried. Nick had thought those discoveries momentous. But they were nothing to the knowledge that Seiji Katayama was perfectly capable of getting and displaying nervous jitters like the rest of humanity. It was a quarter past six and Seiji had changed six times. He paced for half a lap around their room before disappearing into the bathroom temporarily. _Seven,_ Nick ticked off mentally as Seiji emerged again.

“What do you think?” Seiji asked.

Nick had made no secret of watching Seiji ready himself for his date but he hadn’t expected to be asked for his opinion.

“About your outfit?” Nick asked and Seiji nodded. “I like this sweater on you. But you should swap out the slacks for jeans. You’ll still look classy, but it’ll be more casual. Less intimidating for a first date.”

Seiji nodded again, smartly. He fished through his closet and pulled out two pairs, holding them out for Nick’s inspection.

“The black ones,” Nick said without hesitation. Seiji rolled his eyes.

“Of course _you’d_ say that.”

“Black’s the best. Also, I recognize that pair, I know they fit you _real_ well, if you know what I mean.”

Seiji paused on his way to change to shoot Nick a judgmental look. But he changed into the black jeans and looked splendid in them. He slipped on black loafers and Nick thought to ask if he had anything less rich kid-y. But he couldn’t imagine Seiji in Converse so he didn’t even bother asking. Seiji fidgeted slightly, weight shifting from foot to foot and hands straightening his cuffs. When he glanced at Nick through his eyelashes, Nick realized he was waiting for his opinion again.

“You look great,” he said honestly.

“Really?”

“Perfect,” Nick confirmed.

“Do you have any last words of wisdom for me?” Seiji asked, finally deeming his cuffs satisfactory and leaving them be.

Nick thought about it.

“Yeah, actually,” Nick answered. “I do.”

Crossing the room, Nick gently took Seiji’s face in his hands. He kissed Seiji’s beauty mark—he liked doing that. Then he kissed his cheek. His nose. The arch of one eyebrow. His forehead. When he let go and stepped back without doing anything more, Seiji’s confusion was evident.

“That’s—,” Nick cleared his throat. “It’s not exactly a make out skill but sweet kisses _are_ important. It’s an affection thing. Affection is more important than kissing, remember that. If this guy only does or doesn’t like you because of your kissing, he’s not worth it, okay?”

“Okay,” Seiji said in a way that sounded more like hesitant humoring of Nick than actual taking of the advice. But Nick had tried.

“Now go do your hair before it’s time to go meet your man.”

“Actually, I was going to ask,” Seiji said, a hand touching the glossy swoosh of hair across his face. “Do you think I ought to keep it down for tonight?”

“You never wear your hair like that.”

There was no way Seiji had seriously asked if he should forgo styling it, was there?

“I know. But you said you liked it better this way.”

Nick stared at Seiji, all dolled up and gorgeous and fretting endlessly about this date. Enough to worry over his hair. Nick couldn’t believe Seiji was remembering _Nick’s_ compliment over his unstyled hair right now. Couldn’t believe Seiji was asking for his advice and opinions and actually taking what Nick thought—what he liked—into account.

Nick reached to brush Seiji’s hair up out of his face and into an approximation of its regular placement. He was no less gorgeous than he had been with it down.

“You should style your hair like normal,” he said, quiet but firm. “Anyone too stupid to see how pretty you are with your hair up or recognize how great _you_ are, intensity and all, doesn’t deserve you. If you’re not going as yourself, what’s the point?”

Nick held the silky strands of Seiji’s hair until he noticed the supremely light blush across Seiji’s cheeks, so soft a shade of pink it could have looked natural if Nick didn’t know that Seiji was drawn in blacks and whites. He let go of Seiji and stepped away.

“Okay,” Seiji whispered, voice as soft as his blush.

Once again, Seiji disappeared into the bathroom. He cut it close, coming out with his hair perfectly in place with only a couple of minutes left to get to the front gates. Seiji pocketed his phone and wallet and made it all the way to the door before turning back. Nick could see that strange, nervous, jittery quality about him again, like his feet were confused about where they were meant to be taking him.

“I don’t want to go,” he said. It was a miserable little confession, small and meek and not like him at all. Nick laughed gently.

“You’ll be great,” he encouraged. “That’s just the nerves talking, don’t listen to them. Go. Have fun. Kiss your boy and show him that you’re definitely not bad at it at all. I promise you won’t regret it.”

Seiji frowned. Not a glare. His eyebrows were pulled together, but not down. They were displeased and upset and maybe a little confused but they weren’t glaring. And Seiji’s frown, too, was a different flavor from usual. Nick could see where a corner of lip was sucked between teeth, like it was being restrained from saying anything more. It didn’t. He didn’t. Seiji frowned and then nodded and turned again to the door.

Nick watched Seiji leave and felt a weird pull in his gut as the door closed and he heard Seiji’s key turn in the lock, the way it always did when Seiji left, regardless of if Nick was in the room.

It didn’t matter if Nick was here or not. Either way, Seiji had left. Off to kiss some boy he’d gone to such extreme lengths to impress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you can tell Seiji's real nervous because he asked _Nick_ for fashion advice lmao


	7. Sweet Kisses

Nick was always awake until the lights out bell. Often, he was awake well beyond it. So it wasn’t like he was waiting up for Seiji. Not really.

But he was, really, and he knew it. Even if he’d expected Seiji back at one in the morning, he’d have waited up to see how it went.

Nick had to wonder if this was allowed. There was _before_ the date and _after_ the date and Nick wasn’t sure the same rules would apply now that they’d crossed over into the _after._ Kissing was out, obviously. But what else was out with it? Now that Seiji had all he needed from Nick, what was left of their tentatively friendly relationship from this last week? Now that he’d offered kissing lessons and wardrobe advice, Nick was irrelevant.

But he wanted to know how the date had gone. He wanted to ask and to be allowed to ask.

Just as Nick predicted, Seiji’s key turned in the lock at almost nine on the dot, three minutes past and no more. Nick sat up—he’d been lounging on his back, thinking—but Seiji didn’t say a thing. Nick heard the shuffling of his shoes coming off on the other side of the curtain and the heavy _thwump_ of Seiji sitting on his bed.

_That’s it?_

That was all Nick got after being dragged into this? A sidelong glance on Seiji’s way to bed? Bastard. Seiji was the one that had started this with his stupid demands and his stupid questions and now he’d just have to deal with what he’d done. And what he’d done, whether he liked it or not, was befriend Nick.

Nick stormed Seiji’s side of the room, determined to question Seiji about his date, but he was flummoxed to find Seiji laying on his bed in a similar way to how Nick had been laying on his only seconds before. He was still in full dress, minus his shoes, and just staring up at the ceiling, one arm flung across his chest and the other by his side.

Curious, Nick approached with more care and less fire, sneaking into position to peer down at Seiji’s face. He was a little worried at what he’d find there. Seiji wouldn’t cry over a bad date, would he? But Nick didn’t see tear-stained cheeks or red eyes. What he _did_ see were reddened lips.

Reaching down, Nick swept a thumb over Seiji’s obviously-kissed lips.

“So,” he said, letting his thumb linger at the corner of Seiji’s mouth for just a moment. “How was it?”

With a final tap on Seiji’s lips, he withdrew his hand.

“Terrible. I didn’t like it.”

Nick had to laugh at the pout in Seiji’s voice.

“Forget all I taught you?” He teased. Seiji scowled.

 _“I_ wasn’t the problem. He just wasn’t very good at it.”

“How would you know? You’ve only kissed one— _two_ people.”

“I know. But he didn’t kiss like you.”

Again, Nick laughed.

“Shit, sorry, I should have mentioned kissing different people is…well, different. And I, uh, probably let my personal preference bias the lesson even more to what I like instead of keeping it, like, more general.”

“I _told_ you I didn’t want to go.”

That was all Seiji said, staring petulantly up at the ceiling as a blush crept onto his face in stronger force than any blush Nick had yet seen from him outside of kissing. He stood there and watched it spread across Seiji’s neck and face and ears as his words spread across Nick’s mind.

_Oh._

Nick got it. Got why Seiji hadn’t wanted to go and why he’d disliked kissing his date. Got why he’d laid in his bed glaring at the ceiling for two hours, waiting for Seiji to come back.

Seiji’s mattress protested when Nick added his weight to it, on all fours over Seiji.

“Would you maybe be interested in going on a different date…unless you’re seeing your other boy again?” Nick asked.

Seiji’s surprise settled down into a glare and he turned his head, looking away from Nick.

“If it was up to you,” Seiji said irritably, “I would be.”

“Don’t be that way,” Nick soothed. “I was just trying to be decent. I thought it was nerves. I thought you had butterflies over your stupid fucking date that you cared so damn much about. I wanted you to be happy and enjoy your evening. But, obviously, if it’s up to me, you’d only go on dates with me and you’d never kiss anyone else.”

This got Seiji’s attention. And perhaps his forgiveness. He turned to look back up at Nick.

“I told him I had no interest in seeing him again.”

“Good. And about that other date, what do you say?”

“To be clear, you are asking me out, aren’t you? Not trying to set me up with, I don’t know, Eugene or something?”

Nick snorted at the idea of it. “I just said I only wanted you to date me, why would I set you up with anyone else? Yes. I’m asking you out. Will you go out with me?”

“Yes.”

“And, to be clear, I don’t just want _a_ date. I want to _date_ you. That means a commitment to this.”

“That means no asking anyone else to kiss me,” Seiji translated flawlessly. Nick beamed at him.

“Is that a deal?” He asked. A hand circled around his wrist and pushed up his arm until Seiji had his fingers set into Nick’s shoulder, underneath the wide strap of his tank top.

“I promise I won’t. I would never ask anyone else to kiss me anyway,” Seiji said. His eyes were intense as they stared into Nick’s. “That’s the thing. You keep saying that there’s more to dating than kissing. I think you’re right. I didn’t want to admit to anyone that I’d never kissed a boy before. I didn’t want to risk anyone seeing that I was new to it or bad at it. But you’re different.”

“Because you don’t care what I think,” Nick nodded.

“I didn’t,” Seiji confirmed. “I could not have cared less about my annoying roommate’s opinion of me.” Seiji’s free hand came up to hold Nick’s face and press a thumb into the corner of his mouth. A corner that was down-turned and frowning. “I didn’t care what you thought of me and I didn’t think it mattered what I said or did because you already didn’t like me.”

“Only because you were a dick,” Nick muttered.

“Precisely.” Seiji still held Nick’s shoulder but he let his other hand drop from Nick’s face. “You already thought me foul but you never…”

“I never what?” Nick asked, noticing the way Seiji’s lips pursed and his eyebrows drew low in the beginnings of a scowl. He was nervous. Or at least uncomfortable.

“You never told me I don’t belong here or whispered behind my back. You didn’t like me but you’ve always treated me like just another person.” Seiji turned his head again, his cheek smooshing against the pillow. “I suppose I thought that you were likely to _keep_ treating me that way no matter what. So I admitted my shortcomings to _you_ , Nicholas, rather than risk letting my date see them. I had no interest in letting him see me as I am because I wanted him to like me. But you…there wasn’t a reason to pretend with you.”

“I like you,” Nick said firmly, thinking he understood what Seiji was getting at.

“I’ve never been anyone but myself with you and you like me _anyway.”_

“Not anyway,” Nick corrected, _“because._ I’m glad you never pretended. I’m glad you let me get to know you. I like you, _all_ of you.”

“I care what you think of me now,” Seiji admitted quietly, more into his pillow than to Nick. Nick shifted his weight to free up a hand and nudge Seiji’s head to turn back to him.

“Don’t start pretending with me, please. You can care what I think of you, but don’t worry. Because what I think is that you’re amazing and I like you a lot and I’d be sad if I lost the real you. The whole time you were gone tonight, I worried about that. I worried you wouldn’t want to be friends with me anymore after your date. I thought I’d lose kissing you—which _sucked_ —but worse than that, I thought I’d lose you letting me sit by you at lunch and saying hi to me in the morning and answering my questions. That sucked way worse.”

“You haven’t lost any of it,” Seiji said, soft but sure.

“Good. God, _good._ I might have done something stupid to try and get it back. To try and get you back.”

“I’ve no doubt it would have been disastrous. Most things are when you’re involved.”

“But not this.” Nick ducked down to press a kiss to Seiji’s forehead. And to the arch of one of his spectacularly spiky eyebrows and to his nose, his cheek, his mole. Seiji’s exhale was a tiny laugh as he turned his head again, trying to escape the flood of kisses, but he had no hope of it.

“What’s this all?” Seiji asked.

“I _told_ you. Affection.”

Seiji thought on that for a moment. And then, without turning his head, “I want more.”

“Okay,” Nick agreed, kissing softly down Seiji’s face, down his neck.

Nick could feel Seiji’s body buzzing beneath him, aching for more. He pulled Seiji’s sweater out of the way and found again that tempting collarbone. This time, he bit it. Then kissed it. Then teased a hickey from the thin skin covering it. When he was done, Seiji’s gaze was set unflinchingly on him.

“Kiss me,” he requested.

Nick did. Seiji was his absolute favorite person to kiss, the way he huffed and overthought and hesitated, the way he clung and demanded and implored. Now that Nick knew he wasn’t losing Seiji—not his friendship or his kisses—he wasn’t afraid to admit it to himself how much he liked this. Because he did. He _really_ did. He liked Seiji. He liked Seiji whether he was kissing him or fencing him or talking to him.

Nick’s fingers tangled into Seiji’s hair and pulled it loose of the styling he’d advised for the night. He liked it up, the way Seiji always wore it. And he liked it down too. But he especially liked this, liked pulling it free and messing it up.

Nick liked the careful way Seiji shifted beneath him and the careless way Seiji reacted to his touch, sighs rolling from his lips unbidden and fingers tightening their grip unthinkingly as Nick kissed him with enough force to chase that other boy from Seiji’s mouth and mind completely.

“Nicholas,” Seiji said his name in the place of a moan and it made a wave of want crash over Nick, want that was only made worse when Seiji looked up at him with dark eyes and a wonderfully satisfied little smile. “Do you like this?”

“Yes,” Nick said without hesitation. “I like this.”

“Me too,” Seiji admitted without prompting or teasing. “I like this. I like you.”

With that, Seiji pulled Nick’s face down to his, surprising him by kissing the bridge of his nose and crest of his cheek, his hands gentle in Nick’s hair.

“What’s this?” Nick asked, not expecting the question to make color blossom across Seiji’s cheeks, but not complaining when it did.

“An affection thing,” Seiji replied tersely, “or so I’ve been told.”

Nick couldn’t argue with that and when Seiji kissed him again, this time on the lips, it was with the tentative and careful kisses Nick had taught him very first. Soft and sweet and full of affection, it was just about the most perfect kiss Nick had ever received.

Sweet kisses really _were_ important.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spot the line I added after reading Rivals ~~I can't get over how adorable Seiji's smooshed cheek was, okay?!~~  
>  Fellas, thank you all for joining me for yet another kissing fic lmao y'all are the best 💜💜💜
> 
> Some housekeeping stuff I want to go over, so if you're reading this in the future, feel free to disregard it: SO. I am a dumbass and have nerfed us all. I have my next Nick/Seiji fic mostly written but I didn't think things through when writing it and uhhhh used some very background details from the upcoming novel when writing it and now don't feel right about publishing it until after Striking Distance comes out. I doubt you'd be able to tell what the spoilers are but they _are_ there so yeah... Anyway, I wanted to give you guys a heads up that the Nichoji line of my fanfics will be going on hiatus. I'm not done writing for them by any means, I'm just stupid, so don't be alarmed when I don't post a new Nichoji fic until, as of my current plan, October 2nd. To my Eugesse friends, we're still going strong and you guys won't miss me at all lmao. To my Nichoji friends, I'm super sorry about this and hope to see you for the next one! <3


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